CONNECTING DEVICES

Expanding Networks
• Networks cannot be made larger by simply adding
new computers and more cables
• Less efficient !!

• Can install components to

• segment (divide) large LAN to form smaller LANs

• connect LANs

• Required components
• Repeaters, bridges, routers, switches or gateways
Network Devices
 Functions of network devices
• Separating (connecting) networks or expanding
network
• e.g. repeaters, hubs, bridges, routers,
switches, gateways
• Remote access
• e.g. 56K Modems and ADSL modems
Repeaters

 A physical layer device acts on bits not on frames or

packets
 When a bit (0,1) arrives, the repeater receives it and
regenerates it, then transmits it onto all other interfaces
 Used in LAN to connect cable segments and extend the
maximum cable length
 Repeaters do not implement any access method
 If any two nodes on any two connected segments
transmit at the same time collision will happen
 Do not isolate and filter packets
 Cannot join segments with different access methods (e.g.
CSMA/CD and token passing)
Function of a repeater
A repeater connecting two segments of a LAN
 Hubs

 Acts on the physical layer

 Operate on bits rather than frames
 Also called multiport repeater
 Used to connect stations adapters in a physical star topology but logically bus
 Hub receives a bit from an adapter and sends it to all the other adapters without
implementing any access method.
 Does not do filtering (forward a frame into a specific destination or drop it) just it
copy the received frame onto all other links
 The entire hub forms a single collision domain, and a single Broadcast domain
 Collision domain: is that part of the network (set of NICs) when two or more nodes
transmit at the same time collision will happen.
 Broadcast domain: is that part of the network (set of NIC) where each NIC can 'see'
other NICs' traffic broadcast messages.
 Interconnecting with hubs

 Backbone hub interconnects LAN segments

 Advantage:
 Extends max distance between nodes
 Disadvantages
 Individual segment collision domains become one large collision
domain  (reduce the performance)
 Can’t interconnect different Ethernet technologies because no
buffering at the hub
Here we have a
single collision
domain and a
single
broadcast
domain
Hubs Vs. Repeaters

 Hub are different than repeaters in the following:

 The provide network management features by gathering
information about the network and report them to a monitoring host
connected to the hub so some statistics about the network
(bandwidth usages, collision rates, average frame sizes) can be
generated.
 If an adapter is not working the hub can disconnect it internally and
the network will not be affected.
Bridges/switches

 Acts on the data link layer (MAC address level)

 Used to divide (segment) the LAN into smaller LANs segments, or to connect LANs
that use identical physical and data link layers protocol
 Each LAN segment is a separate collision domain
 Bridge does not send the received frame to all other interfaces like hubs and repeaters,
but it performs filtering which means:
 Whether a frame should be forwarded to another interface that leads to the
destination or dropped
 This is done by a bridge table (forwarding table) that contains entries for the nodes
on the LAN
 The bridge table is initially empty and filled automatically by learning from
frames movements in the network
 An entry in the bridge table consists of : Node LAN (MAC) Address, Bridge
Interface to which the node is connected to, the record creation time
Bridges

Connecting two or more LAN segments

together
Bridges (Switches) Vs. Hubs

A Hub sending a packet form F to C.

A Switch sending a packet from F to C
A bridge connecting two LANs
Switch learning process

 When the switch receives a frame, it compares the source address of

the frame with each entry in the forwarding table
 If No match is found, the bridge will add to the table the frame source
address and the Interface on which the frame was received.
 If a match is found, the bridge updates the Interface number on which
the frame was received if it is different from the one in the table also it
updates the record time
 Then, the switch compares the destination address of the frame with
each entry in the forwarding table (MAC table)
 If a match is found then
 The bridge compares the interface number on which the frame was received and
the interface number in the table, if they are different the bridge forwards the
frame through the interface number stored in the table. Otherwise, if they are the
same the switches discards (drops) the frame.
 If no match is found, the switch floods the frame on all interfaces except
the one on which the frame was received.
A learning switch and the process of learning
Some switch features

 switch forwards a frame with broadcast address to all

devices attached to the whole network (single broadcast
domain)
 Increases reliability (how?), performance (how?), and
security (how?)
 (“plug-and-play”): no configuration necessary at
installation of switch /switch or when a host is removed
from one of the LAN segments
 Disadvantage: switch does not allow multiple paths
between LAN segments or between any two devices.
Collision domains in a nonbridged and bridged network

In heavy load, each station has an average

effective theoretical bandwidth = 10/12

Each station has an average effective

bandwidth equal =10/3
 Prior to spanning tree application

Switch

•When using switches, the network should not contain any

loop (there should be exactly one path from any LAN to any
other LAN
•Loops can cause number of frames in the LAN to increase
indefinitely
Loop problem in a learning switch
Forwarding and blocking ports after using spanning
tree algorithm

 For any connected graph there is a spanning tree that

maintains connectivity but contains no closed loops
 Loops are logically disabled by the minimum spanning tree
algorithm
 Switches

 N-Port bridge where N is equal to number of stations

 Usually used to connect individual computers not LANs
like bridge
 Allows more than one device connected to the switch
directly to transmit simultaneously
 Can operates in Full-duplex mode (can send and receive
frames at the same time over the same interface)
 Performs MAC address recognition and frame forwarding
in hardware (bridge in software)
Isolated
collision
domains

Full-Duplex
operation
Frame Forwarding

Switch Forwarding Methods

Frame Forwarding

Store-and-Forward Switching
 Features of Store-and-Forward
Switching:
 Error Checking– After receiving the
entire frame, the switch compares the
frame-check-sequence (FCS) value in the
last field against its own FCS
calculations. Only error-free frames are
forwarded
 Automatic Buffering– ingress port
buffering provides the flexibility to
support any mix of Ethernet speeds.
 Store-and-Forward is Cisco’s primary
LAN switching method.
Frame Forwarding

Cut-Through Switching
 Rapid Frame Forwarding - The switch can
make a forwarding decision as soon as it
has looked up the destination MAC
address.
 Frames with errors are forwarded.
 Fragment Free - modified form of cut-
through switching. The switch waits for the
collision window (64 bytes) to pass before
forwarding the frame.
 Provides better error checking than cut-
through, with practically no increase in
latency.
 VLAN Definitions
 VLANs can segment LAN devices without regard for the
physical location of the user or device.
 In the figure, IT users on the first, second, and third floors
are all on the same LAN segment. The same is true for HR
and Sales users.
 A VLAN is a logical partition of a Layer 2 network.
 Multiple partitions can be created and multiple VLANs can
co-exist.
 The partitioning of the Layer 2 network takes place inside a
Layer 2 device, usually via a switch.
 Each VLAN is a broadcast domain that can span multiple
physical LAN segments.
 Hosts on the same VLAN are unaware of the VLAN’s
existence.
 VLANs are mutually isolated and packets can only
pass between VLANs via a router.
Benefits of VLANs
Routers
 Operates at network layer = deals with packets not frames
 Connect LANs and WANs with similar or different protocols
together
 Switches and bridges isolate collision domains but forward
broadcast messages to all LANs connected to them. Routers isolate
both collision domains and broadcast domains
 Deals with global address ( network layer address (IP)) not local
address (MAC address)
 Routers Communicate with each other and exchange routing
information
 Determine best route using routing algorithm by special software
installed on them
 Forward traffic if information on destination is available
otherwise discard it (not like a switch or bridge)
Routers connecting independent LANs and WANs

Routers
End of sub topics